The main issue facing the logistics and industrial sector, aside from climate change, is this lack of assets, according to Jonathan Holland, senior fund manager at LGIM Real Assets.
“Our biggest challenge at the moment is trying to find more opportunities in what is now a very competitive market,” he told Funds Europe for the April issue. “Every man and his dog wants industrial at the moment.”
A study by property specialists Savills shows that 2020 was a record year for demand in the logistics sector. In Europe, take-up reached 26 million square metres – an increase of 12% on 2019.
As people increasingly turn to the internet for shopping, there aren’t enough ‘sheds’ in strategic locations to house goods.
The industry is faced by a “chronic” under-supply, said Rémy Vertupier, co-head of institutional fund management, separate accounts and club deals at AEW, one of the world’s largest real estate investment specialists.
Learn more about challenges in the logistics sector here: Global real estate: Logistics centres reach a new milestone
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